Nap Time: The Story of How Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie Met
by thehemingwaydilemma
Summary: A short, simple one shot focusing on how Ren and Nora became friends, way back in preschool. I can expand if you want, but for now I like how it's formatted and am pleased with it's length


A collective groan went up from the class. "I know, I know, but it's only for ten minutes, so everyone get your blankets and make your way to rug. You all want to grow up big and strong now, right?"

All the little kids trudged over their cubby holes, complaining about the dreaded nap time when they could be out running around, playing, wrestling – even reading would have been better. No one liked nap time.

Well, not everyone.

Ren gratefully pulled his blanket out of his cubby, walked over to the big green and red striped rug, and curled up into a ball, his eyelids already heavy. Unlike the other kids, he enjoyed sleeping, and needed naptime from all the running around he did all day. Not that he didn't like playing outside with the other kids; he just got tired quicker, and making friends was harder for him. He'd gone the first week of preschool without making a good friend, and just hopped from group to group to join in on games. He was always welcome, but not everyone really talked to him or tried to include him the way they did with everyone else. At least with nap time he didn't have to feel alone or have other kids try to –

"Pssst!"

Ren started, having almost fallen asleep if not for the loud noise next to him. Ren tried to go back to sleep, it must have been for someone else, no one really want to talk to him, especially not –

"I said, "Pssst"!" This time, the speaker poked him in the back to prove her point. Ren rolled over, squinting into the dark at whoever was disturbing his sleep.

Wrapped up burrito style in a pink hearted blanket, a girl with spunky orange hair and blue eyes peeked out at him, all smiles and blushes. "Hiya! I'm Nora!" the girl whisper-yelled, loud enough for Ren to hear but quiet enough so the teacher didn't. "I don't like nap time, so I wanted to talk to someone, but all the girls around me don't want to listen. Not saying you're like a girl, but I like your pretty hair, and are those pink eyes real? I've never seen pink eyes before and I REALLLY wanted to know if they're really real 'cause I'd like them, but I'm okay with my blue ones. Do you want to play house after this? I hate naptime, by the way, and I've asked the other boys but they don't want to play house because they say it's a girly thing, but it's not. They say pink's girly too, but you're a boy and you have pink eyes, so it's not something boys can't - "

"Miss Nora!" the teacher said, scaring both the children and making the children around her pretend to be asleep. "Naptime means no talking; even if you aren't asleep you need to act like it." Ren Almost fell asleep again, but now he was scared and hoping not to get in trouble. His big sisters told him about teachers that made you write words on the board until your hands fell off, or took away your recess if you talked in class. Sleep was out of the question now – he could get in trouble!

The little girl next to him heaved a sigh. "Okay, Missus M. I'm sorry. But you see, I was talking to this nice boy and I don't want him to be lonely so I was asking him-"

Miss "M" held up a hand for silence. "It doesn't matter what you were talking about Nora, you're still interrupting the class. Just like I asked you to stop talking during reading time, or when you were talking when I was teaching your friends to make paper hats." The teacher sighed. "I'm afraid you'll have to sit in the corner during recess."

Nora hung her head, for once not talking on end. "Okay teacher," she said, rolling back up in her blanket and turning to face the other way. "I'm sorry."

For the next five minutes of nap time, Ren couldn't sleep. That girl wasn't going to be able to have fun during recess, all because she was talking to him. He didn't want to see other people feel left out or sad; he felt like that a lot and knew it wasn't always fun. After a while of it happening he had gotten used to being alone: his sisters would be at school all day, his mommy and papa were busy hunting all day, so little Ren was usually left alone, and he was okay with that. But this Nora girl didn't seem to be that way, Ren thought. She seemed to thrive off of being around people, and he didn't want her getting in trouble because of him.

The recess bell rang and everyone cheered, running to stuff their blankets in their cubbies and play outside. As the teacher sent the little kids outside, making sure Nora staying in the corner by herself, she noticed one little boy was still sitting on his blanket. She walked over to him, squatting down so she was eye level with the black haired toddler.

"Ren, sweetie, what's wrong? Why aren't you running outside?"

Lie Ren looked up at the teacher. "I was talking with Nora during naptime. I shouldn't be allowed to play with the other children."

From across the room, Nora looked up. _That little boy with the black hair and pink eyes said my name,_ she thought. _What's he doing?_

The teacher frowned. "But Ren, you weren't talking the whole day when we told you not to." Come to think of it, she hadn't heard the little boy talk _ever_. "And you only sit in the corner if you did three bad things, not only one."

"I know" Ren said softly. "Can I still go on time out?"

The teacher thought see saw what was happening. She smiled and patted him on the back. "Okay Ren, you may go on time out." Miss Morena got up and went outside to supervise as Lie Ren went over to sit next to Nora.

Nora looked up at Ren, for once not sure what to say. Her big blue eyes looked up at the little boy in front of her, his pink eyes down on his feet. After a few seconds she patted the spot of floor next to her, beckoning for him to sit down next to her. Ren walked over and plopped down, looking at Nora as she looked back at him. Neither spoke.

Finally: "Thank you," she said, wrapping her new friend up in a big bear hug, snuggled up close to his chest. She felt his heart start beating just a little bit faster and smiled.

Ren looked down at the girl hugging him tightly, confused for a moment, and then rested his head against hers. "You're welcome" he said, for once okay with not going to sleep.


End file.
